


Use Honey, Not Vinegar

by Clarybell90



Category: Original Work
Genre: Asthma attack, Escape Attempt, False Sense of Security, Honestly I need to stop writing this shit, Kidnapping, M/M, Magic, Magical Characters, Magical Creatures, Magical Worlds, Near Death Experiences, Overall bad time, Panic, Poor humans get caught in the crossfire, Prison, Sick Character, Slavery, The Fae think they're superior, asthmatic character, enjoy my trash, fearing for life, inhaler, mine
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-27
Updated: 2019-02-27
Packaged: 2019-11-06 14:05:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,429
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17941103
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Clarybell90/pseuds/Clarybell90
Summary: A burst of what I can only describe as life jerks through my lungs. Airways open and the swelling in my throat clears in an instant. Without any hesitation I gasp in a deep breath. Then I cough as the air is too much for my system. Then I suck in another. The cycle repeats several times, and I shake as feeling slowly returns to my body."Peyton," The fae whispers into my ear, "Just breathe."Calm sweeps over me, drowning anything other than obedience. The hacking dies down as my breaths finally even out into something my lungs can handle. A pleasant little warmth goes up my spine. Every thought narrows down to one order. Just breathe.





	Use Honey, Not Vinegar

Grandma always said that faeries are real and that I should fear them every step of the way. Of course, that was years ago. Grandma is dead now and no one believes the stories of the dead. Not unless you're a homicide investigator or something.

This night is making me reconsider my beliefs.

I curl deeper into the darkness of my closet and try to block out the screaming. The unnatural noises echoing through the house. The way my baby sister cries. If I stay still enough, muffling my breath under my hands, maybe they won't come upstairs. Maybe they'll leave me be. It's harder to do than I thought it would be. My entire body shakes.

The god awful whuffing of whatever creature they use makes it's way upstairs. I can hear the clicking of it's claws against the wood. Holding my breath, I try dig myself deeper into the clothes.

Silence falls for half a second before the door jerks open. Panic slams over me like waves and I bold before I can think.

Something slams straight into my stomach, shoving all the air out of my lungs in one sweep. Instantly I choke trying to take another breath. Then another. It takes four tries before I can suck anything into my lungs. It's not enough.

Trying to scramble away when already on the floor proves fruitless. The creature lays it's jaws on my leg, and tighten it's grip. Terrified, I fall still. My chest feels tight.

"I told you I smelled another one. Our lord will be pleased with the haul we got this time," A scratchy voice says. Another one snaps back in a language I can't understand. A hysterical laugh tries to slip between my lips, but all that comes out is a wheeze. Though nothing is touching anything but my leg, it feels like someone's standing on my chest. I can't _breathe_.

One of the monsters kicks my side. "You hit it too hard Xyct. Broke the damn thing."

"I didn't break it," The fae, Xyct from what I can gather, snarls. They go back to bickering in another language as meaty hands lift me to my feet. It takes effort to keep my feet under me as the two of them drag me down the stairs, their 'pet' trailing behind.

Blue light filters in from the living room. Sadly, it's not the TV causing the glow. A deep, bright ring sits right above our coffee table. The hound jumps into the thing without hesitation, but the fae put something over my eyes. My heart falls into my gut. Before they can shove me in I start squirming, but the extra movement makes what little breath I can get in strangle to a stop. The two holding me laugh before shoving me forward.

Everything lurches, and my hair stands on end. Several things lightly stroke down my arms, yet I feel nothing when I try to bat them away. A dull roaring is all I can hear, and I wonder if it's from how little air I can get or from something else.

I feel more than know when I fall out the other side. Warmth sits on my back. The sun is out, despite the fact it was supposed to be night at home.

The hands of the faeries return as they jerk me somewhere. The blindfold remains on, and my imagination runs wild with what they're going to do with me. I can feel my heart hammering, and every part of my body shakes.

"Peyton! Peyton baby!"

Instantly I jerk my head towards the sound of my mother's voice. Trying to call out to her fails though. The only sound I can make is a strangled wheezing. Gentler hands find their way to my arms and tug me away from the faeries. I cling to my mom, trying desperately to breathe.

Deftly, Mom unties the blindfold. The brightness is almost enough to blind me, and I shove my face into my mom's shoulder as I keep sucking in shallow breaths. She tries to pat my back in an attempt to help, but a cough is all that causes.

A snapping of fingers is my only warning before I'm jerked apart from my mother. Invisible forces pull all my family into a line. My baby sister cries as she's pulled from Dad. The only thing that stirs from our movement is the flowers. My throat closes up just a little bit more.

"There. Everyone ready for inspection?" A voice asks. The sound of it sends pleasant little shivers down my spine and I barely register looking towards the man who spoke.

Gorgeous as a cobra waiting to strike. Everything about him screamed danger, yet I can't force my gaze away. Black filters around the edge of my vision. No more air is making it into my lungs.

I don't know what panics me more, the burning in my lungs or the way the fae makes his way down the line. He gestures this way and that with every person he looks at. Most are dragged away by the hulking monsters that brought us here, but my younger siblings are taken by elegant little things with wings. I can see the needles of their teeth as they smile.

"Please," Mom begs as soon as he stops in front of her, "Please help my son."

The man does nothing but look her over. He gives the same gesture as most of my family, and the hulking monsters grab her once more.

"No! Peyton!"

They drag her off, but something she says seems to catch the cobra fae's attention. My legs wobble beneath me. The fire is all the way up my throat now. I can barely make out his face once he stops in front of me.

Surprisingly smooth fingers run down the side of my face. Mute terror is the only option I have as everything slowly shuts down. No about of gasping gets through my throat.

The collapse comes sooner than expected. My knees buckle, and my head is too fuzzy to think about trying to catch myself. How long has it been since I've last had an attack this bad? Will there even be a next time?

Warm arms catch me before I can hit the ground. Shuddering tingles go down my entire body where we touch. A hand presses into my chest, hard. Stars pop in my eyes as darkness tries to overtake them.

A burst of what I can only describe as _life_ jerks through my lungs. Airways open and the swelling in my throat clears in an instant. Without any hesitation I gasp in a deep breath. Then I cough as the air is too much for my system. Then I suck in another. The cycle repeats several times, and I shake as feeling slowly returns to my body.

"Peyton," The fae whispers into my ear, "Just breathe."

Calm sweeps over me, drowning anything other than obedience. The hacking dies down as my breaths finally even out into something my lungs can handle. A pleasant little warmth goes up my spine. Every thought narrows down to one order. Just breathe.

I don't know how long I stay in the fae's arms, but eventually the burning fades away. Exhaustion coats every muscle in my body, and it takes effort to not fall asleep. He's so warm.

"Take him into the mine with the rest. We need to get what we can out of them all."

Alarm instantly flares in my mind, and I try to jerk away. His grip remains true even as the giant ones say loud _'Yes my Lord'_ s. I'm sure the beautiful one can see the fear in my eyes. He smiles, showing off his wicked looking teeth, and caresses my face one last time before he pushes me into the waiting hands of the others.

My skin stays warm where he touched me even as they pull me from the sun and into the darkness.

* * *

Time is no longer relevant. Sleep is the only thing I can base anything off of, and I've slept so much that I've lost count. I should be older. So should everyone else here. Yet none have aged a single day since we've been dragged into this hell.

Mom rubs my back as I force my lungs to once again cooperate. The dust and dirt of the mine has does nothing to improve their condition. I'm sure if my doctor could see me now she'd have a stroke.

Grunting is our only warning telling us that the goblins are back. Forcing myself to stand only results in failure. No matter how many days we spend digging, I never seem to get stronger. If anything, the constant oxygen deprivation makes everything worse. I shoo away Mom before she can get in trouble too. Better for them to punish only one of us for not working.

They drag me off. More minerals kick up as I constantly stumble. Coughing only irritates the goblins, but I can do nothing to stop the heaving in my chest.

"That's it. We a'n getting no work from this worm. Throw 'im to the hounds," One of them hisses, jerking on my hair. Fear flares, but I know better than to fight back. Last time ended with broken fingers. This time they'll be ripped off.

The other one guffaws in what I can only take as agreement. I barely manage to glance back at my family before they drag me away.

* * *

The hounds are hungry. I can see it in the way they look at me, weak and tied down. As soon as this shift is over, they'll be put into the cage. I can only hope the panic causes my asthma to kill me before they do. At least then it'll be less agonizing.

Trying to shift does nothing but chafe my wrists. The ropes are tight enough my fingers are turning blue. Everything hurts. Nothing I can do to fight will matter.

I don't even register the tears falling. Not until something smooth rubs them away.

Gasping in shock, I jerk my head away. The hand follows, cupping my cheek in warmth. The cobra fae. Their lord. He's here.

"Now why are you going to waste a perfectly good human?" He asks, obviously not to me.

"I- Uh. Forgive us Lord Terrin. We was just not getting not'ing from that one," The goblin skitters away from his master's gaze, "Too weak. Can't do the work."

A thumb strokes my face as I tremble in Terrin's grip. I can hear the hounds growling once again. He'll understand soon. Realize I'm not good for anything but food for his monsters. I barely did anything in the mines.

Shock stutters through me as his other hand tugs loose the knots on my wrists. My fingers ache as circulation returns to them. I swallow heavily, waiting for the catch.

"Then I'll take him."

* * *

The blankets are tucked tightly around me once again. How many times have I woken up in this room? I don't remember. It's hard to when sleep threatens to once again drag me under. A more urgent need, however, has me slipping out of the warmth and softness of the covers. My chest is tight, and it only gets tighter as my movement kicks up the pollen from several flowers around the room.

The manor is huge and elegant. It feels like I could walk for days and never find an end. How I'm supposed to find a single faery in it is even more daunting. I could die before even getting close.

Yet, like magic, a warm hand materializes on my back. I shudder, and resist the urge to bolt. The only other time I was out of bed was the first day, and I learned just what trying to escape would cause. It takes effort to not grab where my arm had been broken. Been being the key word. Everything was healed now, as if nothing happened.

"Look who's awake," Terrin purrs, "Does my sweet boy need something?"

He already knows though. You'd have to be deaf to not hear the rasping in my breaths. Tugging me closer, Terrin lays a hand on my chest as I'm forced to lean back into his arms. Once again they're warm and welcoming. A lure that you don't realize is a trap until too late. I was caught. Trapped in the honey that is his presence.

The magic is gentler than it was the first time. Then again, he never let it get as bad as the first time. No. He just kept the flowers around to make sure I stay weak as my lungs rebel against me. Cute and his, unable to fight. If I manage to get away, I'd die before a way home could be found.

Throat clear once again, I try to step back into the room. Exhaustion still whispers at me to sleep longer.

A hand on my shoulder and the door slamming shut is my answer to that want. I choke down the fear as Terrin tugs me down the hall. He wants me for something else today. I can't tell him no.

The food is what surprises me. A table full of it sits in the center of the room. The smell is enough for me to realize just how little I've eaten the past few days. What has me hesitating is that there's only one chair. Large and comfy, but only one.

Terrin chuckles at my dread and picks me off the ground. I must weigh nothing to him. What little extra was in my form ate away within the first week working in the mine. You didn't get fed if you didn't produce enough.

Setting me in his lap, Terrin makes a plate. My stomach growls. I can feel more than see his grin as he brings a fork up to my mouth.

"Go on. Eat. Master won't let you starve."

I don't try to fight. My lips part and the fruit sets itself on my tongue. I shudder at just how sweet it tastes. Just how perfect everything here is. An illusion to hide the rot underneath.

"That's a good boy. Just let me feed you, Peyton." My master nuzzles my cheek.

Any resistance left falls away at the sound of my name on his lips. The magic that buzzes in my veins relaxes me. Listen. Obey.

I'm sure Terrin's smile is sharp enough to kill. 


End file.
